Friday, May 5, 2006

   A complete turnaround from yesterday!

I'm feeling lots better than I did yesterday. But it may be the mocha frappuccino talking.

I'm at work. We're full tonight. We got softball teams in & they're all jerks. Haha!

I got a couple things done for the new theme. Yay!! I'm not gonna get anything else done tonight that involves a computer, because I'm not bothering with my own computer. Too crazy around here. And anyhoo...it's a little after 9:00 pm and there's just no point in dragging the thing out now. Since we're gonna be busy tomorrow night, too, I may just have to wait 'til Sunday to get anything done on the computer. Hopefully I will have this new theme done by the end of next week!

I think I'm gonna go now. Sorry. Can't get to sites tonight.

Laters!

Comments (1) | Permalink

Thursday, May 4, 2006

   *growls* One long paragraph of ranting.

Just one of those days where I'm in a really pissy mood. I don't know what exactly tipped it off, but I want to tell the world to go take a flying leap. It may be a combination of things. My morning started out with a call from a bank, "Why haven't you paid?" Blah blah blah. Then I realized my paycheck wasn't on the table like it usually is on payday. I would have called work to see if they came in, but then I realized the biggest ditz in the world was working this morning and she would have laughed her insipid little giggle and I wouldn't have gotten a straight answer out of her. I think I probably would have told her off with some rather colorful language. If you're wondering, yes, the checks were in. If I had got here and found that my brother had picked mine up and forgot to give it to me, I'd probably have kicked his arse when he got in to work tonight. Then the drive to work was aggravating. If the wind comes across the car from the passenger side, the window next to me whistles. Of course it was windy from that side and I was ready to scream by the time I got to work. Now I'm at work and would rather be somewhere else. I should be studying e-commerce, but I've found that my attention is wandering. I did finally make it through the first book today. At least one thing is going "right."

Well, great.... I hear water running. I had the other girl check it out and the toilet in the men's room around the corner is stuck in flush!!! I hope the maintenance man calls back soon. The sound is beginning to get annoying.

Blah...my yogurt has reached room temperature.

Laters!

Comments (4) | Permalink

Wednesday, May 3, 2006

   Raging domesticity....

It's Wednesday and that means laundry! Yippee. Third load just finished washing, second load is almost done drying. That leaves two loads to go. Towels are such a pain to wash sometimes...

*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Well, the new theme is going to happen one of these days. I just have to find the perfect images. I also have to draw one up. Should be interesting. I will leave no hints as to what the upcoming theme will be. *insert evil laugh here* I will say this...it's gonna be different!

*^*^*^*^*^*^*
I have today off. Whee. It's probably gonna be my last day off until next Wednesday. I have to work tomorrow and Friday. Then my schedule will probably be back to normal and I'll work the usual Saturday through Tuesday. That'll be 7 in a row! Ick.

Well, I think I'm going to start nosing through my image files to see what ones will work. Gotta have a background picture, a new welcome/intro thingy, perhaps a new avatar.... So little to do and so much time to do it in! ... Scratch that. Reverse it!

Laters!

Comments (3) | Permalink

Tuesday, May 2, 2006

   What was that shiny thing in the sky yesterday?

It's Tuesday morning. I didn't post anything for Monday. Oops. Oh, well, it's not like anything exciting happened. But that big, yellow, shiny thing made an appearance yesterday afternoon. I was confused. I wasn't quite sure what it was. I had to pull out my dark glasses to cut down on the glare even!!! What was that thing? It's not out there right now! Oh yeah, that was the Sun!!!

*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Work was kinda busy last night, which is typical for a Monday. I didn't have to work with the boss's daughter. Hooray! I didn't even drag out the computer at work. *gasp*

*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Hmm...I had an idea for a theme change last night. I may have to consider it further. I know it hasn't been that long since I put this current wallpaper up here, but I am already considering something else. I really must think on it.

Well, the noon whistle just made its noise. I suppose I could figure out something for lunch. Blah....

Laters!

Comments (2) | Permalink

Monday, May 1, 2006

   Still wet.....

Well, it's still Sunday and it's still raining! It's been raining for three days, and it's not gonna stop until Tuesday or something like that. I think it's time to break out the gills.

*^*^*^*^*^*^*
I had today off. That was my fifth day in a row off. It's gonna be hard to go back to work tomorrow. I was supposed to work, but April switched me for Thursday night because she doesn't have a babysitter for that night. The bad thing is, I'm probably going to end up with seven days in a row starting Thursday. Be prepared for a wacked out Kitsune by this time next week.

*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Since I didn't have to go to work, I was pretty lazy today. My brother decided we needed to go to Sioux City early in the afternoon. We ate at Wendy's and then went to the mall. We didn't do much there, but ended up with ice cream cones served to us by indifferent teenagers at Dairy Queen! Whee! The ice cream was good, though. Then to the grocery store and Target before heading back home. My brother went to bed 'cuz he works 11 pm to 7 am and needed to get some sleep before work. So I watched the last disk in my Kenshin set. Now I am out of Kenshin to watch!!!! I wonder when the next box set is gonna be released.

Anyhoo... so the evening was spent watching Mythbusters and Law & Order: Criminal Intent. I also attempted to do some perspective drawing. It's not that easy!!!

*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Now, it's a little after 11 pm. I should get offline and try either drawing or writing. I need to get myself back into the disciplined routine I had when I lived in Council Bluffs. But before I can do some of that, I need to get a job that doesn't have me working from 4 to midnight!

Laters!

Comments (4) | Permalink

Sunday, April 30, 2006

   Still wet...

Here it is, Saturday night about 11:15 pm. Yippee!!! It rained pretty much all day, but it did let up for a little while, so my brother & I went for a walk. It consisted mainly of going over to our sister's house and playing with the kittens.

I don't have pictures beyond the ones I posted a while back, but the kittens are getting bigger! They all have their eyes open and are getting the hang of walking. Rico is the psycho-kitten according to my sister. He gets all mad if he can't do what he wants. Flash purrs up a storm! He's so funny. The other one is a chubby little guy. He's been named Clyde now. I hope to get pictures soon!

*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Well, to those that read the story. Thanks for your comments. Unfortunately, I have to do more writing. That was the last of what I had written on it! I better get my arse in gear!

*^*^*^*^*^*^*
As it was a rainy day, I didn't do a thing! I watched a hockey game on TV. Edmonton beat Detroit 3 to 2. Then we watched a silly movie on TV this evening. That's it. Now Monty Python's Flying Circus is on. Great stuff.

Laters!

Comments (1) | Permalink

Friday, April 28, 2006

   Whatever....

Friday evening. It's wet outside. It's been raining pretty much all day.

Onigiri is all better now. I haven't driven him anywhere yet. It didn't cost as much as I expected it to. Yay. I now have money to get gas to get to work next week until payday rolls around. Gas prices are sucky.

*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Other than the car being repaired and the weather being rainy. Not much is going on around here. My brother & I went to Sioux City and did some comparison shopping on ink cartridges for his printer. Such excitement!!! Woohoo!!! We also hit the library book sale. I found an old atlas. Those things are such fun. I kinda collect atlases. My favorite one is The Dollar Atlas of the World. The printing date is 1900. The one I got today is from 1950. Somewhere I have one that dates to World War 2. Way cool to see how things have changed and how they've gone back to similar to what they were a while back.

*^*^*^*^*^*^*
So... there ya have it. My exciting day. Pretty thrilling, eh? I have another story piece down below for those that read it. It's kind of long. I apologize for that. However, it's also the last part that I have written, so I need to write more!

Laters!

*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Additional: For those of you wondering who I mean when I say Onigiri is fixed, here you are. A picture of my car. See why he's named Onigiri?

Comments (4) | Permalink

Don't Let Go

After wearing themselves out flying the kite on the beach, Sam and Hikaru went over to the blanket where Takeda and Midori were sitting. Before they were able to sit down, Takeda got up and asked Hikaru to go with him to buy some lunch.

A brief look of confusion crossed Hikaru’s face. “Of course, sensei,” he said as Takeda began walking toward the soba stall. He heard Midori and Sam giggle behind him. “Sensei, is something wrong?”

Takeda tried to keep a serious expression as they walked, but he had to smile. “Nothing is wrong, Hikaru-kun,” he said. “Nothing at all. You looked like you were having fun out there with the kite.”

“Umm…yes, it was fun. I don’t remember ever doing anything like that before. It felt… good.”

Takeda smiled again. “I’m glad to see you enjoying yourself. Things haven’t been easy as of late.”

“No, not really.” Hikaru looked up at Takeda. “Sensei, is there something else you want to tell me?”

Takeda looked ahead and said, “Don’t let her go, Hikaru-kun.”

Hikaru stopped walking. “Sensei?”

Takeda walked a few steps and turned back to face Hikaru. “Sam-chan. Don’t let her go. I have a feeling she’s here for a reason. Something about you.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I think Sam-chan is here for you. Her presence here has something to do with you. I don’t know what it could be, but I do know that when she’s with you, you aren’t as restless or angry. Don’t let her get away from you.”
Hikaru was stunned. What had gotten into Takeda to make him say such things? He watched as his teacher walked to the soba stall and bought four helpings of noodles. It wasn’t like Takeda to talk of anything but swords or duty.

Takeda came back from the stall and handed two of the boxes to Hikaru. “Here, these are for you and Sam-chan,” he said. Noticing the look of confusion on Hikaru’s face, he added, “Still haven’t figured it out, boy? You’re a bright young man. I’m sure you can figure out what I mean.”

They walked back to the beach in silence. Each of them was lost in thought. Takeda’s thoughts were of Midori, and Hikaru’s were a jumbled mess. He was still trying to figure out what Takeda had been talking about when a clearing of the throat and a nudge from Takeda brought him around. He handed one of the boxes of soba to Sam and said, “Dôzo.”

Sam took the noodles with a smile and a “Domo,” and motioned for Hikaru to sit down.

The four chatted quietly while eating, and then Takeda asked, “Midori-san, would you and Sam-chan like to stay at our house? It’s not very big, but it has a spare room where you could sleep. It would also be less expensive than staying at the inn.”

Hikaru looked at Takeda in disbelief. Midori was taken aback. Samantha was confused.

“Takeda-san, I’m honored,” Midori said, “but I need to talk it over with Sam-chan first.”

“I understand,” Takeda replied. “By all means, take your time. I didn’t expect an answer right away.”

They finished their noodles without talking, but Sam and Hikaru were both ready to burst with questions about what Takeda had said, but for different reasons. Once finished eating they all stood up to return to the house. Again, Sam and Hikaru went ahead and were pointing things out to each other. Takeda and Midori followed behind in silence.

At the house, they said their goodbyes and the men watched the two women walk away. Sam turned and waved. Hikaru waved back, and then he turned to his teacher and asked, “Why did you say such a thing? What possibly could have made you ask Midori-san to stay here?” He looked at the expression on Takeda’s face, and realized what it was. “I see. You said those things to me so you could have Midori-san stay with you. You don’t really care about Sam-san, do you?” He turned and walked away.

“Hikaru-kun, no, that’s not it at all,” Takeda said, but it was to no avail, as Hikaru was not listening. Takeda went into the house. He needed a way to convince Hikaru that there was more to his request than his own feelings for Midori.

Midori and Sam were almost to the inn when Hikaru stormed past. He turned and shot a burning glare at Midori as he went by.

“What was that about?” Sam asked.

Midori watched as Hikaru walked away. “I don’t know,” she said. “But did you see his eyes? It’s hard to describe, but there was something more to that look than just anger.”

Sam nodded in agreement and said, “I have to go after him.”

“Of course, go.”

Sam ran after Hikaru, calling his name. She lost him briefly in the market square, but spotted him as he went out of the square and through town towards the trees. “Hikaru-san,” she cried. “Please, wait up.”

Hikaru ignored her and took one of the trails up into the hills. He wanted to be alone. He wanted to burn something. He came to a clearing and stopped. Anger was burning within and he so much wanted to lash out at the world… at Takeda.

Samantha followed Hikaru up to the hill and saw him in the clearing. She wasn’t sure at first that it was him, for his back was to her and his hair appeared to be silver. “Hikaru-san,” she said, “what’s wrong? Are you all right?” She could feel the tension in the air.

Hikaru didn’t turn to look at her, but growled.

“Don’t growl at me, Nakamura Hikaru-san!” Sam exclaimed. She took a step closer and continued, “Turn around and face me!”

The woman is persistent, Hikaru thought. Why did she follow me? He turned around slowly, hoping to frighten her away.

Sam watched Hikaru turn around. His eyes were glowing with a green fire and his skin and hair were silver. She could tell he was angry, but she knew she could not show any fear. Deep in her heart she knew he would not harm her. She took a step forward and reached out to touch his cheek. “It is you,” she said. “You’re beautiful.”

She’s either brave or stupid. He watched her face as she studied his. Much to his surprise, she didn’t recoil in fear, but smiled. “Why do you smile? You should be afraid of me. Run, damn it! Run from the demon! Why aren’t you afraid?” he yelled.

Samantha kept smiling. She let her hand drop from his cheek and took one of his hands. In English, she said, “I didn’t understand one word of what you just said, and I know you can’t understand me, but you don’t need to be so angry.” She led him over to a fallen tree and made him sit down.

Puzzled, Hikaru watched as Samantha sat next to him. She continued to speak to him in English and there was a calming effect to her voice. Soon she stopped talking and just sat holding his hand. He could feel the anger flow out of him, and his head began to clear.

They sat quietly for a while. Sam watched with interest as Hikaru changed back to his human form. As they sat, Hikaru thought about that which had angered him so. He realized what Takeda had been trying to tell him down at the beach. He also realized how selfish he had been for getting so angry with the one person, aside from his father, that was what he considered family. Not letting go of Sam’s hand, he stood and said, “Ikimashô,” and started back down the trail toward town.

Their first stop was the inn, but neither Midori nor Takeda was there. They went to the house. Hikaru led the way and found them in the sitting room. Hikaru knelt nearby and bowed deeply to his teacher. “Sensei, forgive me,” he said. “I was quick to anger and was wrong to do so. I treated you badly and regret my actions.”

Takeda said nothing at first, letting Hikaru stay focused on the floor. “Apology accepted. Now apologize to Midori-san.”

Hikaru turned to Midori and said, “I apologize, Midori-dono. I treated you badly as well. Please forgive me.”

Midori nodded and said, “I accept your apology, Hikaru-san. Are you feeling better now?”

Hikaru sat up straight, but didn’t meet Midori’s gaze. “Yes, I am,” he said softly.

“I’m glad. Takeda-san and I were concerned about you. We were worried something might happen.”

“I’m sorry to have worried you. I don’t know what came over me.”

Takeda said, “I think I know what it was, but it’s past now, so we won’t dwell on it. Midori-san, would you and Sam-chan like some tea or do you have something else you need to do?”

Midori said, “It’s time for Sam-chan’s lessons, but thank you for asking. We should be going.” She said her goodbyes to the two men and left with Samantha.

Hikaru and Takeda saw them to the door and returned to the sitting room. “So,” Takeda said, “Did you figure out what I was talking about at the beach?”

“Yes, sensei,” Hikaru said quietly, looking at the floor.

“Now do you understand why I asked Midori-san what I did?”

“Not entirely, sensei, but like you said, my reaction is in the past. It’s better not to dwell on it.”

“Very good. Now it’s time for practice. Meet me in the backyard with the bokken” Takeda went out the back door.
Hikaru looked up as Takeda left. He ran to get the bokken and went outside to practice in the warm afternoon sun.

Comments (0) | Permalink

Thursday, April 27, 2006

   I'm feeling much better now...

Well, here it is Thursday afternoon. I feel much better than I did yesterday at this time. I'm still a little stuffed up in the nose area, but I'm not falling asleep while reading email and so on.

I did end up taking a 45 minute nap yesterday afternoon. I was going to read, but ended up just stretching out on the couch and hugging the book while I slept. My cat even came over and lay on the floor by the couch. She wanted attention, but all she got was a pat on the head before I was asleep.

*^*^*^**^*^*
Well, not much is going on today. I should walk downtown and get the mail. That and take Onigiri down to the mechanic so he gets fixed tomorrow. I just won't be able to make it out of bed early in the morning to get him there. Then I should make a couple phone calls and start working on e-commerce. I really want some chocolate....

Will be back to visit sites tonight.

Laters!

Comments (6) | Permalink

Wednesday, April 26, 2006

   So tired....

I think I have a sinus infection. I don't want one of them. They're not fun because they inevitably turn into ear infections from the drainage. The other reason I think I have a sinus infection is because I could probably lay down on the couch and take a long nap right now. It's not quite 1:00 in the afternoon. Blah.

*^*^*^*^*^*^*
Well, I should be studying for that e-commerce test, but I just can't get the brain to realize it shouldn't be goofing off. I think the only thing it can handle today is staring at manga. Which is what it did yesterday before work. I still have one disk of Kenshin left in my box set..... Hmm....

*^*^*^*^*^*^*
I will return later tonight to visit sites. Hope everyone is having a great day. Or at least a better one than me. Laundry... whee....

Laters!

Comments (4) | Permalink